The Evolving Identity of the State of Israel: A Jewish State by Jamil Shawwa

I personally do not have any problems or issues with the debate and wishes of the State of Israel and many Israelis to have the State, their country, considered, by the world body, the international community as  a Jewish State.

The State of Israel after all is the original and principle homeland of the Jewish people from all over the world.

The questions being raised right now are many, for example, the status of other ethnic or better to say, religious groups, Muslims, Christians, Druze, Sharkas and others. Other questions involve how attaching a specific religion to a country's identity would affect its status as a democratic country for all of its citizens. Further more, what if each country in the Middle East started to attach a religion to its name and identity. What if France or Germany call themselves Christian, or the US calls itself Muslim, or Christian, or Jewish. What if India with over 100 million Muslims started to call itself a Hinduism society, or attach Hinduism to its identity?

This trend though  is happening mainly in Arab and Middle Eastern countries. Egypt calls itself The Arab Republic of Egypt, Saudi Arabia the same thing, Iran calls itself The Islamic Republic. So the argument could go as Judaism has the same concept as Arabism or Islamism; it could contain all religions within it.

The other question: What is in a name that makes it so important to a society; why would the State of Israel- a strong, genuine, vibrant, democratic country for its people, would want to limit itself to a certain identity. I'm sure that even doing so would not compromise it's much needed move to a complete and eventual integration of all it's groups within one society with equal rights or equal chances fair access to all positions, and all opportunities; we are talking access, after that it is up to the individual or the group to make it or break it.

Let us look at another angle, Judaism to its believers and to those that believe and understand the three divine religions, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, is not just a religion, it is a concept and it is a way of life. It is also an idea, and politically, it is a huge magnet. So the debate that is going on in the State of Israel right now, very strongly among all sectors of the society, is about how to preserve this idea, Judaism, as a way of life and an identity that the Jewish people from all over the world believe in  and gather around, and continue to attach it to a society and a country that include and will continue to include Israeli citizens that are Muslims and Christians, Arabs and Druze, and other sects.

How can those other groups feel as first class citizens, if their country calls itself, a Jewish State- we cannot tell them to leave, Israel is their country.

The dialogue and the debate also is taking a very important turn as the State of Israel is preparing it’s citizens, all of them, to the expected establishment of a Palestinian State in the West bank and the Gaza Strip.

A proposed law to define who is the Jewish has been in the Knesset for decades, and is a daily topic everywhere in Israel and among the Jewish people all over the world, and if passed, my information is that it has not passed yet, but if passed it would give the authority to the highest religious establishment, the rabbinate, to assume this responsibility.

The other law that just passed in the Knesset was the “Boycott law" and according to *Haaretz the following apply “According to the law, a person or an organization calling for the boycott of Israel, including the settlements, can be sued by the boycott's targets without having to prove that they sustained damage. The court will then decide how much compensation is to be paid. The second part of the law says a person or a company that declare a boycott of Israel or the settlements will not be able to bid in government tenders.” Bibi Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, voted for the law and in the same time refused to investigate the NGOs that the very same law targeted among others; skillful maneuver from a skilled politician.

I think Israel is going through an **evolution, a search for identity, or a renewable identity, Israel is looking beyond the establishment of the Palestinian State in Gaza and the West Bank to what next.

There is a momentum in Israel- a fantastic soul searching and a fantastic vision that looks beyond the daily routine of having to send its children and it’s best to areas that are not part of the State of Israel; moreover, more importantly, Israel does not want to be called an occupying force.

Simultaneously with peace, Israel will always maintain the necessary power to preserve its rightful place among all nations to live securely and permanently where it is now; this position is not questioned but needs to be highlighted daily within the Israeli society due to the geopolitics which is Israel 'still' surrounded by Arab and Islamic countries and Israel will always have those same countries around it that at this moment do not but will eventually with
it have diplomatic relations.


So if you were Israel, what is the solution, again, beyond the withdrawal from the West Bank and the establishment of a Palestinian State in the West Bank of Gaza? The solution, maybe, is to enforce an identity that has been synonymous to its name but not necessarily enforcing the religious identity. It also means the rise of a new political movement: The Political Jewish, or political Judaism, as now we talk about political Islam- the idea is almost the same as Zionism which is the foundation of the State of Israel.

The evolving concept and the new dialogue might end up establishing new boundaries to the strong religious establishment within the Israeli society.

Now, how can Israel integrate the religious establishment within it’s society, how can Israel create the ultimate civil  society where religion would be a regular political party that runs for elections, that can win and lose but regardless without jeopardizing the secular society and the universal freedoms that are granted to all human beings regardless of their national origins, religions, background, race, ethnicity.

Israel is a secular society, the religious apparatus does not control the society but it’s a political/religious establishment, wise enough not to interfere in Israel’s image as a secular and democratic society.

Israel also gives its citizenship to its citizen as expected regardless whether they are Jewish or not.

Finally, what if the State of Israel decided instead of creating a law to define who is the Jewish, would create a new concept and calls it, Who is the Israeli, and apply what other democratic societies would apply to those that they grant citizenship. Again, Israel has dual processes, the citizenship part and the identity part, and the big question now is whether the Israelis would want to combine both in one or continue to have this dual processes.

Related and Notes:

*Haaretz 07/14/2011

**The Israeli Arabs and the Evolving Identity of the State of Israel

Judaism Conversion

Ultra-Orthodox 1

Ultra-Orthodox 2